Small and medium-sized financial institutions accelerate reform; seventy-two village and town banks deregistered and exited within the year

Recently, more cases of “village merging with villages” have emerged in the Tianjin area—Tianjin Huaming Village and Town Bank absorbed and merged with Tianjin Ninghe Village and Town Bank, and rebuilt the latter as a branch. Both were initiated and established by Shandong Shouguang Rural Commercial Bank. Cases of “village merging with villages,” “transforming from a village bank into a branch,” and “transforming from a village bank into a sub-branch” have become increasingly common. To help resolve risks at rural small and medium-sized financial institutions, the ways village and town banks are consolidated and restructured have become more diverse. According to a reporter’s review, as of April 20, more than 70 village and town banks have been approved for dissolution this year. At the same time, including state-owned major banks and joint-stock banks, many banks are accelerating the “takeover” of their affiliated village and town banks; some banks have already achieved a “zero” in the number of village and town banks they have established. (Securities Times)